It is common practice to wind up hose and other similar strand materials such as wire and cable into a coil for compact storage. When the hose is later dispensed from the coil, a reel of some type is generally required to prevent twisting of the hose or other material as it is unwound.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,677,510 to Osborne describes a method and apparatus for handling and storing hose. The apparatus consists broadly of a pair of semi-circular reel bases which in the winding position of the device, may be laid out and spaced apart a short distance so that a strand may be laid or wound thereon in the form of a figure eight. The strand, starting with the last end laid in, may be drawn out linearly without kinks or any tendency to snarl.
Winding the hose onto the apparatus of Osborne however is awkward and time consuming as the hose must be laid out manually in the figure eight pattern. For later unwinding the hose, a frame is required to support the hose in the figure eight pattern such that a separate apparatus is required for each hose which requires dispensing when multiple lengths of hose are to be dispensed.